Taxi fares will increase in some parts of Cumbria from next month.
The Cumbria Crack reports that members of the regulatory committee for Westmorland and Furness Council approved to raise the maximum cost of taxi fares for hackney carriage vehicles by seven per cent from April 1.
According to a report prepared for committee members in November, the average cost of a two-mile daytime journey with no waiting time is currently £6.50 in Barrow, £6.60 in Eden and £6.70 in South Lakeland. This is lower than the national average of £6.97.
With the proposed increase, taxi fares will rise to £6.80 in Barrow, £6.80 in Eden and £7.20 in South Lakeland for the average cost of a two-mile daytime journey with no waiting time.
A consultation conducted by the council with hackney carriage drivers found 83 per cent of licence holders in Barrow support the proposal, with 61 per cent in favour in the Eden area as well as 91 per cent in the South Lakeland area.
Councillor Les Hall (Hawcoat and Newbarns, Conservative), said: “I think it’s quite clear from the consultation that the majority of the taxi trade want an increase, and we should go ahead with the increase, but I do believe there needs to be harmonisation and we know that work’s ongoing.”
George Harkin, a taxi driver in Barrow for ten years, objected against the proposed rise due to the unacceptable disparity between the areas in Westmorland and Furness.
Mr Harkin said: “Why should people like myself be treated differently in what we can earn as taxi drivers in the same district of Westmorland and Furness?
“The opportunity is now to deliver the same reward to all taxi drivers no matter what geographical location they are in in Westmorland and Furness. What is being proposed today is not inclusive and it is not fair.”
In response, chair of the committee Councillor Helen Ladhams said she agreed fares should be equal and told the committee a consultation and approval from the secretary of state would be necessary for harmonisation.
The head of public protection for the council Graham Barker told the committee work was underway for an overarching policy to cover all of Westmorland and Furness.
Source: https://cumbriacrack.com/2024/03/12/taxi-fares-to-rise-in-cumbria/
Taxi drivers in Sefton could lose their licence for five years if convicted of driving while using a mobile phone.
Under rules introduced at Sefton Council Licensing and Regulatory Committee on Monday March 11, licensed drivers face new and updated sanctions as the local authority approved changes to the Licensed Driver Convictions Policy.
The Liverpool Echo reports that three new offences were added to the policy and included guidance on what sanctions licensed drivers would face if they were convicted of using a hand held device while driving, convicted of discrimination, or convicted of exploitation.
For the offences of discrimination and exploitation, any driver convicted would have their licence permanently revoked and prevented from ever working as a taxi driver.
However, there was some debate around the clarity and justification for the new guidance on the offence of using a hand held device while driving.
The revised policy stipulated an immediate five-year ban would be imposed on licensed drivers if they were convicted of such an offence
Petitions were submitted by Frank West and Joseph Johnson, H&PH trade representatives on behalf of licensed taxi drivers and asked for a revision of the wording in the policy.
It said: "The petitioner will request on behalf of the Hackney and Private Hire trade that members amend the driver convictions policy in relation to the disqualification period for the use of a handheld device."
The trade representatives wanted the policy to reflect the modern working environment of taxi drivers who rely on mobile phone devices to confirm, amend or cancel jobs through associated booking apps.
The reps said an immediate five-year ban was unnecessarily harsh and unclear as some drivers may be punished for tapping their phone while managing booking apps.
The reps were clear a ban is understandable for drivers accepting calls with a phone in their hand. However, they said any instant ban should not be imposed on drivers who may have been using a device (mounted on the dashboard) to accept jobs.
Instead, the reps requested a change to the wording of the policy which would mean drivers would go straight to mediation (were a ban would be considered) rather than the imposing of an immediate ban.
Local authorities across the Liverpool City Region have been working to 'standardise conditions' in relation to the convictions policy and all changes have been passed by Wirral, Knowsley and Liverpool.
The DfT published the Statutory Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Standards in 2020 and have informed local authorities that any exception to the guidelines at local level must be predicated on a 'compelling local reason'.
The committee at Southport Town Hall did consider the petition put forward by the H&PH Trade Representative but did not believe the reasons reached the threshold as laid out in Government policy.
The committee also stated that there were caveats to the convictions policy that did include options for mediation.
The report by Sefton Council said: ”The recommendations to be implemented unless there is a compelling local reason not to and there is a risk that the council could be open to challenge if the new statutory guidance is not followed without sufficient justification.
“Adhering to the new statutory guidance will mitigate against any challenge to the council’s licensing regime."
Source: https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/taxi-drivers-face-five-year-28799347
A Leicestershire MP has claimed Uber drivers are using local taxi ranks illegally and fears this could cause problems for passengers.
LeicestershireLive reports that Harborough MP, Neil O'Brien, has expressed concerns that it also takes trade and earnings from local drivers, who have paid to be able to work in the district.
MP Neil O'Brien said: “The taxi drivers in Harborough have to pay significant sums of money to operate in our area. Typically, this will be £320 for their taxi licences, a further £360 to EMR for use of the taxi rank at Market Harborough Station, plus other costs that can take the total bill to around £1,000.
"Additionally, taxi drivers here go through much more rigorous testing to get their taxi licences than in other areas.
“Despite this, Harborough taxi drivers are facing a challenge from Uber drivers who are licensed in other council areas. These councils have much lower standards and charge a lot less than the licences issued in Harborough.
"Despite this, I understand that Uber drivers are using the taxi ranks and picking up fares in the town, which they are not allowed to do.
"Often these drivers have come from quite far away. I am worried that if drivers from elsewhere are hanging around here, and doing illicit cash-in-hand work which they are not allowed to do, that there will be a safety problem at some point.
“Harborough taxi drivers told me that they want the council to take proper enforcement action to avoid these abuses and to ensure that they can operate properly, as per the terms of their licences.
"As such, I have written to Harborough Council to see what they can do to crack down on this kind of behaviour. Hopefully, they will take action.”
Regarding the safety fears, he added: "The fear is that if people from all around the country are coming and doing illegal cash-in-hand taxi work they may also have poor standards more generally and treat passengers badly. The whole point of licensing is that it should be simple to contact the council and get redress if there is a problem."
Cllr Darren Woodiwiss, Harborough District Council’s cabinet lead for environmental and climate change, said: “Out-of-town drivers who are not licensed through the council are prohibited from using taxi ranks in and around Market Harborough and picking up unsolicited fares.
"We understand the frustrations of our local taxi drivers and the safety concerns they have raised and will look to undertake some weekend evening surveillance.
"We will also discuss the issues with them at the next scheduled taxi forum meeting.
"If reported, we will always ask drivers licensed by another local authority to move on when they are observed using a taxi rank in the district and make contact with the relevant local authority so it can deal with the driver directly.”
An Uber spokesperson said: “Uber is committed to safety and raising standards across the industry.
"All private hire trips in the UK must be pre-booked and private hire drivers are not permitted to use taxi ranks.
"We are reaching out to Harborough District Council to discuss steps we can take to address any concerns.”
Source: https://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/news/local-news/mps-safety-warning-harborough-taxi-9146413
Worcester’s taxi drivers will be given training to help them identify the victims of child abuse and exploitation.
According to the Worcester News, taxi and private hire drivers are seen as being in an ideal position to spot and safeguard at-risk children, as well as vulnerable adults and victims of domestic violence.
Now the city council wants to introduce mandatory safeguarding training for all taxi drivers as part of the process of renewing their licence.
Training schemes have previously been offered to drivers on a voluntary basis, but licensing officers say this has created an “uneven playing field”.
In a report put before Worcester City Council’s licensing committee on Monday 4 March, taxi drivers are described as the “critical eyes and ears of the community” who “often encounter people who may be vulnerable”.
“In respect of child sexual exploitation, appropriately trained licensed drivers can assist in identification of incidents and persons of concern,” the report says.
“However, the council now has licensed drivers with different levels of knowledge in these areas of importance.”
Members of the licensing committee agreed to start a 12-week consultation period, with a view to implementing the scheme from January 1, 2025.
Councillors heard that there will be a cost to drivers but that officers are trying to keep this to a minimum, with the cost of the course likely to be around £20.
Committee chair Richard Udall said a number of licensed drivers had spoken to him to question the need for another financial burden, but added: “Quite frankly I think this is a necessary burden, and it’s for their own protection as much as it’s for the public, especially with the amount of schoolchildren who are being taken to school and back.”
Niall McMenamin, the city council’s principal officer licensing, told the committee: “This is about the driver being able to identify the people in the back of their vehicle, and them knowing the signs, where to report, and what to do at the time, if appropriate.”
Taxi drivers at a Scottish airport have been warned about the potentially “racist” refusal of passengers.
According to The National, all drivers working from Aberdeen Airport have been scolded over the suspected refusal of passengers from Africa due to “smelly food”.
The Press & Journal reports that enforcement officer David Mckane sent an email threatening police and licensing action if anyone was found to have refused fares due to this reason – with supposedly smelly fish being blamed.
But Mckane said he suspected it was “racially motivated” in an email seen by the P&J.
He wrote: “It has been brought to our attention that a small minority of drivers working from the airport are refusing fares due to there being ‘fish’ or ‘other foodstuffs’ in the luggage of certain passengers.
“There is no licensing condition that permits you to refuse a fare for such a reason.
“It is suspected that these refusals may be racially motivated.
“Any driver found to have refused a fare using this excuse or any similar excuse will be taken before the licensing committee and reported to Police Scotland.”
A spokesman for the airport said staff had been “made aware of an incident”.
“[It] is the subject of an investigation, and it would be inappropriate to comment further.”
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